Bedtimes
by FlameOf
Summary: A collection of short, nighttime based conversations between the party members. Rated for potential language.
1. Entry 1: Esteem

Nepgear x Uni: Esteem

* * *

Uni tossed under her bed sheets, feeling strangely restless. She glaced at the clock, reading 1:00AM. For two hours she had been trying to sleep, yet this nagging feeling in the back of her head kept her wide awake.

Staying silent, Uni sat up from her bed and looked out the window, light from both the streets and the stars bleeding into the room and highlighting its details.

The room was average, one you would find in any local inn on Gamindustri, with only two beds and a small table between them. In total, it was an average room.

 _Average._

There was something about that word that really bothered Uni, something about it that constantly brought her mood down. The air was rather cool, causing Uni to shiver slightly.

"Uni?" Nepgear's voice sleepily asked from the other bed, her figure slowly rising from the sheets.

"Ah, sorry, did I wake you?" Uni apologised, turning towards the Planeptune CPU candidate, her hair slightly messy.

"Not really..." she responded tiredly, leaving room for doubt. "What about you? You seem kind of restless tonight, Uni."

Uni fidgeted slightly. "I...it's nothing." she tried to deflect, yet even in the darkness, she could see the scepticism on Nepgear's face.

"Goodness, Uni, you do know that no one believes people who say that, right?" she questioned, making Uni look away.

"Don't be ridiculous." she quietly shot back, still feeling a tired stare coming her way. "Look, just go back to sleep, ok?" Uni tossed the sheet over herself, and faced away from Nepgear.

Silently, Uni hoped that Nepgear would go back to sleep, that she had finally skirted away from the question.

The sound of rustling bed sheets begged to differ.

Uni prepared herself for the expected onslaught of questions, but was instead greeted with a hug from behind by her fellow CPU candidate. "Nepgear? What are you..?"

"It's about Noire, isn't it?" Nepgear cut off, her voice muffled by Uni's hair, surprising her only in the sense that she was expecting to finish her sentence.

"It's really that obvious, huh?" she asked, feeling Nepgear nod against her back in response. "Well, it's not easy, living in the shadow of someone like my sister."

"Hmm." Nepgear hummed in agreement. "I guess I can somewhat relate."

"What, feeling inadequate to Neptune of all people?" the Lastation CPU candidate joked, and was pleased to hear a giggle for a response.

"She may act like an idiot, but my sister can be quite reliable when the time comes." silence followed suite. "I know how hard it must be, to live in the shadow of someone so great."

Uni contemplated for a moment. "Well, maybe, but it's harder when you're only considered mediocre by that person, right?" Silence was all that met the raven haired candidate. "Gear? You still awake?"

Almost expectantly, Uni's question was met with light breathing. Smiling, Uni turned her body slowly, so that she was able to embrace her dear friend.

"Well, I guess this is better than nothing." she muttered to herself, finally drifting off into sleep.

The clock struck 1:30AM, as the CPU candidates slept in each others embrace.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Hello everyone! Welcome to the end of the first chapter of my new project: Bedtimes!**

 **This project, unlike my other one, is a collection of one-shots following certain themes. As such, these chapters will be short and largely unconnected to each other.**

 **And on the subject of 'short', these A/N sections will be more compact, and mostly filled with one liners such as 'Lily Rank Up!' and so forth.**

 **Also, feel free to leave a suggestion with any reviews you do, it'll help speed things along, though I may not get around to them all, but it will get more chapters out when I'm not the only one thinking up plots, and it doesn't have to be limited to just two characters per chapter, but I'd rather not go too far above four.**

 **With all that said, stay tuned for the next instalment!**


	2. Entry 2: Image

Histoire x Neptune: Image

* * *

There were only ever two things that Histoire, the Oracle of Planeptune, would ever wish for.

First and foremost: for Neptune, CPU Purple Heart, to actually be doing her work.

Said CPU was in the bed just across from where the Oracle's was, presumably fast asleep, if the breathing pattern was anything to go by.

Though life has taught Histoire many things, and one of those was to never underestimate Neptune's ability to fake sleeping, and the sound of button pressing kinda gave it away.

Her second wish, though, might come off as a bit more... self concious, as it were.

That would be about her height.

Scaling in at the equivalent of four Key Fragments (about 3'10''), and living in a world made for people who average around the 4 foot 5 inches mark, she can't help but feel a little miffed.

This becomes especially jarring when she spends a night in an inn bed, which are a little longer than six feet, compared to her small frame.

Sighing, the Oracle turned onto her side, the sheets hardly making much noise.

"Something on ya mind, Histy?" Neptune asked from her bed, the pause in the clicking sound affirming Histoire's assumption.

"Neptune, you really should be asleep rather than playing games at this hour." the Oracle replied with a glance.

Neptune didn't have to know she was being glared at to send shivers down her spine. "Aw, come on Histy, no need to be so sour. It's only for a few hours."

"It's midnight." Histoire pointed out, the clock by her side reading 12:00 exactly.

Neptune, as uncharacteristic as it may be, didn't seem to pay much mind to said time, and decided to address the metaphorical elephant in the room (there may have been a case of literal elephants one time, but that's for a different day). "Ya know, Histy, it's kinda obvious that you dodged the question."

Histoire was surprised, to say the least, yet she didn't show it. "It's about the height thing again, isn't it?" Neptune continued, once again catching the Oracle off guard.

"I really wish you would use that brain power of yours more often, Neptune." Histoire responded, turning in the large bed to face the CPU. "And can you really blame me for being just a little self concious? Most people who play the games are unable to tell just how large Key Fragments are, even though this Fic says my height is about 3'10'', I don't exactly feel like I'm 117cm tall."

"Aw, that's just perspectives getting ya down." the CPU responded. "Besides, most players see me as a complete idiot, and I don't let that get me down."

"Yet you are an idiot."

"Well yeah, that's just part of my character. And the important thing is that you embrace it, right?" Neptune continued, sounding strangely wise. "All you need to do is take your small cuteness by the horns and ride that bull!"

Histoire was at a complete loss of words, not just from how uncharacteristically deep that was, but how utterly stupid it sounded at the same time. In essence, it was a situation of being in character and OOC at once, an ability befitting of a main character. "Sometimes, I wonder why I bother asking this sort of advice." the Oracle muttered to herself, turning over in the bed.

"Now that was just uncalled for, Histy." Neptune complained, only to get no response for about three minutes. "Aw well, not like anything will go wrong from this." she concluded, turning back to her console.

The cries of the cicadas filled the room with their song, as the Planeptune Oracle drifted into sleep with a small smile.

 _Lily rank up!_

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Gods, having a writing slump is a pain.**

 **But I digress. Did you think the Fourth Wall would be safe in this fic? Well guess again! It's kinda to be expected when Neptune is featured.**

 **And yes, while the Wiki does say Histoire is 3'10'', part of me doubts that.**

 **Well, stay tuned for whenever the next instalment is.**


	3. Entry 3: Shyness

Nepgear X Rom: Shyness

* * *

Rom laid in her bed, staring at the ceiling. She had several thought flying through her head, many of which fell down to one simple topic.

Her character.

Many found her quiet, shy characteristic endearing, a pleasant trait within the cacophony that was everyone else in this party.

But Rom just couldn't help but feel that it was a bit of a hindrance.

In the bed just off to her side, Nepgear slept in what could assumingly be a sound rhythm, but considering the nature of this fic...

"You ok, Rom?" Nepgear's voice asked, startling the blue CPU candidate. "I can kind of tell you're bothered by something."

Rom felt herself blush slightly, surprised that she had been called out so early. "But what about you, miss Nepgear? I thought you were asleep." she replied in her classic quiet voice.

Nepgear giggled slightly. "I'm a light sleeper, so I'm alright." was her response. "Though part of it's because I can't help but feel like Neptune's doing something stupid. Again."

* * *

Somewhere, in a coffee shop between dimensions, Neptune sneezed.

* * *

Rom giggled at the jab towards Nepgear's sister, but still, her worries persisted.

"Well, I won't force you to talk about it if you don't want to." Nepgear continued. "Just know that if you do..."

"I...it's not like I don't want to tell you. If it's miss Nepgear, I'm sure it'll be fine." Rom hastily responded, channelling her inner Uni. "It's just... well, I'm not sure how to talk about it."

"Well, let's start with the basics, then. What might be troubling you?" Nepgear went into counselling mode, why she had such an ability, no one knows or seems to mind.

"Well..." Rom paused, thinking of how to phrase her problems. "I feel like I need to do something about my shyness, it feels like... I might just be slowing Ram and Blanc down because of it."

Silence crept into the room, and Rom felt like her friend may not have the answer, until...

"You're not actually slowing anyone down, you know." Nepgear finally said. "If anything, your personality motivates people to work twice as hard."

Rom was quite surprised, but the Planeptune CPU candidate wasn't finished. "When you talk to people, your shy demeanour tugs on all the heartstrings. To be honest, I wish I had an ability like that." she continued, making Rom blush intensely. "So, all I can really say is: people like you as you are, just have more confidence in yourself if you don't want to be bothered by it."

Silence once again filled the room, and was only interrupted by a yawn from the Lowee CPU candidate. "I'm... feeling sleepy." she said drowsily.

"Yeah, sorry I kept you up with that speech." Nepgear responded.

"Hmm." Rom replied, laying on her side to face Nepgear with a smile on her face. "Good night, miss Nepgear."

 _Lily rank up!_

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Let's start this segment off by saying thank you to Pikatwig for suggesting this idea. You da best!**

 **I originally had planned for a Dengekiko and Famitsu episode in this segment, but since it was the first request, I just had to do this first.**

 **Sorry if it's a bit shorter than the other entries, I'm slowly getting over a writers block.**

 **Also, points if you get what I was referring to with the 'coffee shop' thing.**

 **Well, till next time!**


	4. Entry 4: Possibilities

Compa X IF: Possibilities

* * *

IF and Compa have been friends for as long as anyone can remember, so room sharing isn't too strange a thing for them to do.

Sharing the same bed due to miscommunications when booking, on the other hand...

Compa, for one, had no qualms with sharing room or bed with her childhood friend. IF, on the other hand, got quite flustered at the idea.

And so, the two girls were lying in bed, one madly blushing while the other happily calm.

"Hey, Iffy?" Compa was the first to speak, taking IF out of her embarrassed trance.

"Something bothering you, Compa?" IF asked, turning over to be face to face with her friend.

"Do you ever wonder what it would be like if we never met Nep-Nep?"

IF raised an eyebrow at the question. "What brought this up? It's unlike you to ask the big questions like that."

"I know, I had a bad dream a few days ago, and now I can't stop thinking about it." Compa seemed slightly distressed by this, as IF noted.

"I'm sure it means nothing important." IF assured her dear friend, but the question itself still lingered in her mind. "But it is an interesting topic... what WOULD happen if we never met Nep?"

The thought hung in the air for a minute, before IF posed an idea. "Well, for one we'd probably be more focused on our jobs rather than running off to save Gamindustri every other week." she stated the first thing that came to mind. "Though at the same time, we wouldn't have met so many new friends, probably."

"So, you think what we have outweighs what could have been?"

"Definitely." IF responded confidently. "After all, we don't regret any of it, right?"

"Of course not, Iffy." Compa seemed almost insulted at the prospect, though whether it was faux hurt or not, IF could never tell, that, or she enjoyed others not knowing. "How could I regret meeting Nep-Nep?"

"Which is why we can't imagine life without her, or anyone else we've met, for that matter." IF chuckled slightly. "Now that I think about it, it almost seems like we're all one big, messy family."

Compa giggled. "Wouldn't that make us like Nep-Nep's parents?" she asked.

The sentence caused the gears in IF's head to turn, and her face to blush immensely. _'Us like Nep's parents → us as parents → us married.'_ her blush turning luminescent as her thoughts kept getting deeper into the idea. "L... let's just try t...to get to sleep, ok?" she turned over, attempting to hide the intense blushing.

Once again, Compa giggled. "Ok, Iffy, if you say so." followed by her turning over and going straight to sleep.

 _Lily Rank maxed!_

* * *

 **A/N:**

 **Gods, it's been a while since I wrote for this one.**

 **Many thanks to one of the guest readers for recommending this pair, and let's all be honest, who doesn't ship these two when Neptune and Vert aren't involved?**

 **Still, production of work has been at a variety of paces lately, so who knows when the next entry will be?**


	5. Entry 5: Memory

Neptune X Noire: Memory

* * *

On this particular night, the Goddesses Purple Heart and Black Heart found themselves sharing the same room. Noire herself seemed somewhat on edge with having to share the room with such a hyperactive CPU, yet said person was being awfully tame this evening.

After the good part of an hour, Noire finally got tired of being on edge, and switched to the 'unusually aggravated' gear. "Are you seriously going to be silent the entire night?" she failed to stop herself from saying out loud, though given the present circumstances, she didn't even bother to feel embarrassed.

"Nyhawha..?" Neptune sounded, voice mixed with surprise and tiredness. "Oh, sorry, Nowa, just got some things on my noggin."

"Ok, first of all: don't call me 'Nowa', we've been over this." Noire turned onto her side to face the other occupant of the room. "Secondly, what sort of onomatopoeia was that?" Neptune rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "And finally, you? Deep in thought? This must be the road to a bad ending."

Planeptune's CPU faked a hurt expression as she faced Noire. "Come on, Noire, even I can do something that serious."

"No, you can't. You're the sort of character that doesn't bother with serious things." the only response Noire got from that was a quiet laugh. "Never mind. Credit for your thoughts?"

"Just so you know, I take payment in advance." a coin flew through the space between, which Neptune caught, in the dark. It's best not to ask how, as no one knows the enigma that is her mind. "I also charge by the hour."

"Don't push your luck." she shot back, accompanied by a glare.

"Gotchya." Neptune seemed to drop that joke then and there. Noire found it odd, yet decided not to press the topic. "Really, I was just wondering how different I was compared to when I had my memories."

Noire paused for several beats. "By the True Goddess, I have no means of seeing that as a joke."

"Boo, do you really think I'm that incapable of being serious?" Neptune pout could be seen in the dark room, and even Noire couldn't help but admit it was kinda cute, but she'd never tell anyone that. Instead, Noire gave the Purple CPU a look that said 'It should be obvious'. "Well, that's the last time I turn to Lonely Heart for advice."

"Oh, you know what?" Noire was once again angered by her many nicknames (some may be considered true), but decided against arguing it. "*Sigh* Just tell me what part about it worries you." she silently added 'idiot' to the end of her sentence, which when unnoticed.

"Well, ya know... I just wonder if I'll be the same Nep if I ever do get my memories back, is all."

Noire pondered the idea, memory does play a large role in a persons identity after all. "Well, call it a hunch, but I'm pretty sure your stupidity is hard wired, so even if you had your memories back, I doubt anything would change drastically."

Once again, the Goddess of Purple pouted at the Goddess of Black's japes, whom was still denying how cute it was. "Ya see, Noire, this is why you don't have any friends."

… Yeah, Noire regrets thinking Neptune could hold a serious conversation for more than two minutes. "You know what? Forget it. I tried to be helpful and you just go and pull that one on me." and with that, she turned her back to Neptune, seeming to go to sleep.

Letting out a small huff of amusement, Neptune turned onto her back, yet kept her eyes on Noire. "Well, thanks anyway. You beautiful Tsundere."

"Oh, will you stop that?" Noire shot back instantly.

 _Lily Rank up!_

* * *

 **A/N**

 **As requested from Sambath, some good old Neptune X Noire.**

 **I originally wanted to write this about the Tsundere archetype, but it proved too difficult.**


	6. Entry 6: Justice and a History

Nisa x Underling: Justice and a History

* * *

Nisa, the local heroine of justice, was no stranger to camping, partly due to the fact that being a wandering vigilante doesn't exactly put cash in the pocket.

As such, she became quite the adept hunter and fisher.

Though if there was one thing Nisa never expected for this particular night, it was to be spending it with everyones favourite Underling.

An awkward air hung over the camp-site, with Underling and Nisa glaring daggers at each other, both on a hairpin trigger, waiting for the other to make a move.

A shiver ran up Underling's spine. "Why do I get the feeling someone's talkin' smack about me?" she asked, though not particularly at Nisa.

"I know not of what you speak, Underling." Nisa responded in a monotonous drama.

"Damn it, why do I have to say it every freakin' time?" Underling clenched her fist. "My name is Linda! Not Underling!"

"Ha! Then why is it that is all your ever called?" the blunette girl laughed, only serving in anger the pale ASIC grunt more.

Underling snarled. "That's because you damn broads had to go and start a running gag!" she shouted, the crackling of the fire between them emphasising her rage. "Man, why did I even agree to staying here?"

"Because a heroine of justice leave no one to fend for themselves, even if that someone is an enemy." Nisa posed dramatically as she spoke. "And besides, it's not like you'll use this opportunity to attack or anything."

Underling shot a glare at the blunette. "I don't exactly have a good track record, especially not to warrant that sort of trust."

Nisa shrugged. "Eh, I'd rather regret trusting you. Makes for better stories."

Underling could only face-palm at that answer.

Shortly after their 'lively' conversation, Nisa fell asleep. Standing up, Underling walked over to the heroines sleeping body, and looked down, pondering her options.

She could take her out right here and now, and no one would be the wiser. But that would be dishonest, and something about that rubbed her the wrong way twice.

Since when did she start caring about honour?

Underling went to walk away, but paused slightly, realising she hadn't properly thanked Nisa.

 _'Seriously, when did I grow a conscious?'_ she asked herself in utter confusion.

Looking left and right hastily, Underling pulled her hood back, knelt down, and gave the blunette a light peck on the cheek. "Don't think I'll do this too often, hopeless heroine." she whispered with a blush as she ran off.

Unbeknownst to her, Nisa smiled at that.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **As per the request of one Franzotaku04, a chapter dedicated to Underling and Nisa.**

 **And for the record, while it may be a weird ship, I embrace those. So go you!**

 **Well, Happy New Year as of writing this chapter, I hope to continue entertaining you all in 2016!**


End file.
